WHAT THE STATE DISTRIBUTION SAYSWithin the 27 current published direct-evidence ZIP reports, Zillow’s June 2026 observed asking-rent index ranges from $1,182 to $2,237 per month, a $1,055 gap around a $1,696 median. This is meaningful within-state dispersion, not a statewide price for a standard apartment: the index reflects asking-rent conditions at ZIP-report level and the reported places are spread across markets. A renter comparing locations should therefore start by deciding whether the budget accommodates the upper end of this observed range, then test the income and burden evidence separately. A lower index can reduce the immediate asking-rent hurdle without by itself identifying the households’ rent burden, a particular bedroom count, or availability of a qualifying unit. Conversely, a higher index is only one component of a household-specific monthly cost decision. The result is a screening frame rather than a single statewide ranking.
The affordability readings answer related but noninterchangeable questions. Direct asking-rent-to-income ratios span 18.6% to 66.6%, which compares the current Zillow asking-rent index with local median household income. At a 30% rent-to-income screen, required annual income among the published reports runs from $47,280 to $89,480. The ACS five-year ZCTA estimates tell a different historical household result: the share of renter households paying at least 30% of income for gross rent ranges from 32.2% to 68.9%. This burden share is not a forecast of what a new tenant will pay, and it does not convert an asking-rent index into a lease offer. It instead shows that lower relative current asking rent and lower observed renter burden need not travel together, because they draw on different rent concepts, time frames, and household populations. Use the first measure for current income screening and the latter to contextualize renter pressure.
Rent momentum also requires a separate read from volatility. Across published reports, median one-year rent growth is 3.37%, with near-flat 0.08% growth in 15237 and 8.06% in 18042. These changes come from the direct monthly Zillow series and describe the index’s movement, not an assurance about the next lease. The same series produces a 2.93% median annualized volatility, ranging from 1.78% to 4.09%. Thus a ZIP can show strong recent rent growth yet have a less even monthly path than a stable-growth label alone might imply. The counter-signal matters in comparisons: sorting only by growth can elevate areas whose monthly index has moved more sharply, while sorting only by volatility can obscure differences in the pace of rent change. Read the growth rate, volatility measure, and the history category together rather than letting any one measure stand in for rental conditions.
HUD provides a distinct administrative reference point. The FY2026 two-bedroom FMR/SAFMR comparison has a 100% median asking-rent-to-HUD ratio across published reports, but the displayed contrast runs from 77.5% in 19130 to 136.9% in 18104. That ratio compares Zillow’s observed asking-rent index with a HUD bedroom standard; it does not state that an available two-bedroom is priced at the index or establish market affordability. It should be used as a benchmark for program and bedroom-standard context, not as a substitute for observed asking rent. Finally, this distribution covers current published direct-evidence ZIP reports rather than every state ZIP, neighborhood, or property. Actual listings can differ by unit size, lease terms, utilities, condition, timing, and availability, and property-level terms must be verified independently.
